The Olympic games have been a part of Greek culture for over two millennia, but only in the last century has it become the modern spectacle the world tunes into.
Where did the history of the winter OLympics begin?
Because of its popularity in England, figure skating was on the program for the 1908 Olympic Games in London. When Antwerp, Belgium, hosted the 1920 Olympics after World War II, there was competition in both ice hockey and figure skating.
Those sports could, of course, be conducted in rinks during the Summer Games. But other winter sports that were becoming popular in Northern Europe and the Alpine regions, such as skiing and bobsledding, obviously had to stay outdoors.
After 1920, national governing bodies for such sports in several countries began talking about the possibility of a separate Winter Olympics The town of Chamonix, in the French Alps, planned a winter sports festival in 1924, when Paris was to host the Olympics. The Marquis de Polignac, a member of the International Olympic Committee, proposed to the IOC that the festival be formally recognized as the Winter Olympic Games.
Another Frenchman, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympics, was opposed to the idea. However, the IOC agreed that Chamonix could call its festival a "Olympic winter carnival."
The festival was very successful, attracting 293 athletes from 16 countries to compete in bobsledding, figure skating, hockey, Nordic skiing, and speed skating. Charles Jewtraw of the United States won the first gold medal, in 500-meter speed skating, but the festival's hero was Thorleif Haug of Norway. Haug won three gold medals, for 18- and 50-kilometer cross-country skiing and for the Nordic combined event
Because of the festival's success and the praise it brought to the IOC for having a such good idea, the Winter Olympic Games were formally established in 1928. The original plan was that the same country would host both the summer and winter games in each Olympiad. But Holland, the 1928 host country, had no skiing facilities, so the Winter Olympics were held in St. Moritz, Switzerland, that year.
Nearly 500 athletes from 25 countries competed, erasing any doubts that the IOC might have had about staging separate Winter Games.
Again, a Norwegian athlete was the star: 15-year-old Sonja Henie , who won the first of her three consecutive gold medals in figure skating. Because of the coverage given the Winter Olympics by the press in Europe and North America, Henie was the first woman to become a genuine international sports figure.
Canada won its first winter game Gold in 1920 . It was, of course, hockey. Calgary was the first Canadian city to host the winters games 1988. In 2010 Vancouver will host the winter games with the Alpine events taking place at Whistler BC.
Vincor Canada has signed an agreement with the Vancouver Organization Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic games as an Official Supplier in the wine production and service category.
This agreement also includes additional sponsorship rights to the Canadian Olympic Team for Beijing 2008, VAncouver 2010 and London 2012 games. Key Canadian brand names, Inniskillian,Jackson-Triggs, Sumac Ridge,Mk'Mip,Sawmill Creek, and See Ya Later Ranch.
Mr Jay Wright President and CEO of Vincor spoke at the press release in Vancouver.
Perhaps one of the most exciting aspects of our official supplier status is the release of the Espirit wines, the result of a unique co-brand partnership with VANCO
We are thrilled to have this opportunity to honour our Canadian heritage while affirming our role as Canada's wine industry leader. This is by far Vincor's most ambitious and broad-reaching sponsorship and is great for the Canadian wine industry.
Vincor has previously supported the Canadian Olympic team
IN 2004 they added their support to our team
History of Vincor
